Bilişim Vadisi DIGIAGE announced its work on the Creative Industries Fund initiative to connect the pool of startups it has grown through its game development programmes with the investment community in a more systematic way. During the DIGIAGE Global Indie Game Summit held in İzmir, memoranda of understanding were signed with H2O Investment, Firstpoint VC, APY Ventures and the New Rising Ventures Venture Capital Investment Fund under Rota Portföy Yönetimi.
The partnerships aim to assess the investment potential of game studios within the DIGIAGE ecosystem, connect suitable teams with investors and explore potential co-investment opportunities. The memoranda express an intention to work together in these areas; they do not constitute an investment decision or a financing commitment.
From game to studio, from studio to the global market
Teams that have reached a certain stage in the development of their games participate in DIGIAGE’s game development camps. The camps enable these teams to present their projects to industry representatives and meet investors and publishers.
The investment initiative aims to turn these connections into a more structured process. By assessing teams’ current stage of development and investment needs, DIGIAGE aims to connect suitable studios with investors.
Erkam Tüzgen, General Manager of Bilişim Vadisi, commented on the investment initiative:
“Türkiye’s strength in gaming goes far beyond individual successful games: we have a talent pool that continually produces new teams and new ideas. We are now focusing on building lasting companies from this pool. DIGIAGE’s investment initiative is a step towards overcoming one of the most critical hurdles facing developers. Our goal is for game studios established in Türkiye to be able to reach players all over the world.”
Visibility for investors, a path to growth for studios
At the heart of the new approach is the opportunity for investors to get to know game development teams throughout their development. The team structures, game development progress and growth potential of studios participating in DIGIAGE’s camp, mentoring, incubation and acceleration programmes will be assessed. For startups deemed ready for investment discussions, connections with relevant investors and potential co-investment opportunities will be explored.
DIGIAGE Director Emre Yıldız said the following about the investment process:
“The day a game studio starts looking for investment should not be the day it starts preparing for it. We get to know teams from the idea stage; we see their games, how they work and how they develop over time. By sharing this knowledge with investors, we can both create more suitable opportunities for studios and help investors discover strong teams earlier.”
New investment initiative announced in İzmir
The investment initiative was announced following the 12th DIGIAGE Game Development Camp, held on 7–10 September at the Bilişim Vadisi İzmir Campus. The DIGIAGE Global Indie Game Summit, held on 11–12 September, brought developers together with investors, publishers and representatives of the international games industry.
DIGIAGE aims to turn the cooperation it has initiated with four investment entities into a process that extends to game studios’ investment preparation and discussions with investors.
